Warren Gatland wants Wales to show no fear and embrace the challenge when they tackle “world-class” Ireland in Dublin on Saturday.
Wales have been largely written off – they are a 14-1 chance with some bookmakers – on the back of successive defeats against Scotland and England, while their last Six Nations win in Ireland was 12 years ago.
Ireland have lost just twice in their last 40 home Tests, need one more victory to equal England’s Six Nations record of 11 successive wins and are on a seemingly unstoppable march towards achieving historic back-to-back Grand Slams.
“We know how good a side they are,” Wales head coach Gatland said. “They are a settled team. They are world-class.
“We have got to be smart and not allow them to play the game on their terms. That is when they are incredibly dangerous.
“Just one moment from them can change the momentum of the game. They have got some key individuals, but we’ve got to try and put them under pressure to unsettle them.
“There has been a lot said about us being underdogs, but that is not a motivation for us. The motivation is the pressure we are putting on ourselves to get better from game one and two.
“We have spoken all week about having no fear.
“We have reflected, and (Wales captain) Dafydd Jenkins has spoken about it, we probably went into that first game with a little bit too much respect for Scotland in that first half, and that was the message at half-time. I think we saw an improvement at Twickenham.
“It is going to be a huge challenge for us but you have got to embrace that, you have got to be excited about that.
“I have spoken to the players about stepping up in big moments and being the one who wants to be part of a big moment and not having any fear about that, not going into your shell.”
Gatland has made a solitary change from the England loss, with fit-again Sam Costelow returning at fly-half instead of Ioan Lloyd.
There are further opportunities for newcomers Cameron Winnett and Alex Mann, while Cardiff back-row forward Mackenzie Martin is set for his Test debut off the bench.
The 20-year-old has played only nine games of professional rugby, and he will become the 1,200th Wales men’s senior international if he features against Ireland.
Gatland added: “We feel we are building for the future, and we have got some really talented young players at the moment who need time.
“I think the players are aware we have a huge amount of growth in us and where we can be in the next 12 months or so.
“We can’t hide away from that fact of how important it is to win (in) international rugby, because that is the expectation.
“When you put that jersey on, everyone expects you to go out there to perform and win.”
And Wales skipper Jenkins said: “We just need to go out there, leave everything out there and see what can happen.
“If we didn’t think that (Wales can win) there would be no point in going there in the first place. We have full confidence we can win and do a job, although it is going to be tough.”
Healy in line to equal Ireland cap record versus Argentina
Cian Healy is set to equal Brian O'Driscoll's Ireland cap record when they face New Zealand in Friday's autumn international in Dublin.
The 37-year-old prop has represented his country on 132 occasions and, after being named on the bench, will equal O'Driscoll's mark if introduced versus the Pumas.
Ireland suffered their first home defeat since 2021 last time out, going down by a 23-13 scoreline against New Zealand.
Despite that loss, head coach Andy Farrell has only made one change to Ireland's starting lineup, bringing Robbie Henshaw in at inside centre in place of Bundee Aki.
Argentina also named their team on Wednesday, with vice-captain Pablo Matera, Guido Petti and Matias Moroni replacing Santiago Grondona, Franco Molina and Matias Orlando.
Ireland team: Hugo Keenan; Mack Hansen, Garry Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw, James Lowe; Jack Crowley, Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Ronan Kelleher, Finlay Bealham; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan; Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris.
Replacements: Rob Herring, Cian Healy, Thomas Clarkson, Ryan Baird, Peter O'Mahony, Craig Casey, Sam Prendergast, Jamie Osborne.
Argentina team: Juan Cruz Mallia; Rodrigo Isgro, Lucio Cinti, Matias Moroni, Bautista Delguy; Tomas Albornoz, Gonzalo Bertranou; Thomas Gallo, Julian Montoya, Joel Sclavi; Guido Petti, Pedro Rubiolo; Pablo Matera, Juan Martin Gonzalez, Joaquin Oviedo.
Replacements: Ignacio Ruiz, Ignacio Calles, Francisco Gomez Kodela, Franco Molina, Santiago Grondona, Gonzalo Garcia, Santiago Carreras, Justo Piccardo.
Pressure to win for England is a 'privilege', says Wigglesworth
Senior England coach Richard Wigglesworth believes that the pressure to win matches is part of the privilege of playing for the national team.
England face world champions South Africa at the Allianz Stadium on Saturday with displeasure growing after four straight defeats.
Included in that run were narrow losses in their first two Autumn Nations Series games against New Zealand and Australia.
Though England have won three of their last four games against South Africa at Allianz Stadium, Wigglesworth insisted everyone within the squad wants to improve.
"This job of being part of the England team is such a privilege, because so many people care, which makes your feeling on the matter really big," Wigglesworth told BBC Sport.
"Our job is to step back from that and see what was right, what was wrong, and what can we fix.
"We need to see the game for what it is, make the decisions for what they are, and get better every week.
"It is our job to make sure the players understand as much as they can that they can’t get affected by that as well.
"We know the attention the team gets is result-dependent, and rightly so."
The last time England and South Africa faced one another was in the Rugby World Cup semi-final in 2023, in which the Springboks came back from 15-6 down to win 16-15.
England will have to be wise to how the visitors have evolved since that game according to Wigglesworth.
"They have a squad and a plan they have done for a while, and when you are successful you tend to stick to things," he said.
"I have really enjoyed watching what they do, and how they do it. It is our job to meet that and rise to it."
Springboks aiming to have 'two best teams in the world', says Esterhuizen
South Africa centre Andre Esterhuizen said that the Springboks are aiming to have "the two best teams in the world" ahead of their Autumn Nations Series clash against England.
The world champions were pushed all the way by Scotland in their narrow victory at Murrayfield on Sunday, though head coach Rassie Erasmus opted to rotate some key starting positions.
South Africa captain Siya Kolisi and flanker Pieter-Steph du Toit started on the bench, with the changes a common theme during Erasmus' seven-year tenure.
Their opening Autumn Nations Series victory also put them back on top of the world rankings after Ireland's first defeat in 19 home games by New Zealand on Friday.
"One of the good things is that everyone is getting game time now," Esterhuizen told the BBC's Rugby Union Weekly podcast.
"It is also about looking forward, you've got to be able to spare all the guys for the next World Cup and build experience into it.
"The aim is to have the two best teams in the world, all in one squad.
"We want to make it second nature for people slotting in, so if someone steps in, they can just slot in and play the same if not better than the other player."
South Africa next face England, who are yet to pick up a win this autumn, at Twickenham on Saturday.
Steve Borthwick's side suffered a narrow two-point defeat by New Zealand, before conceding an injury-time winning try to Australia on Saturday.
England have now lost each of their last four Test matches, their longest such run since losing five straight games in 2018, but Esterhuizen's former Harlequins team-mate Marcus Smith has been impressive for the Red Roses.
"It's a great space, I obviously love to play there," Esterhuizen added. "It will be great to be running at Marcus, not run off him.
"It's going to be a great match, England have played well in the last few games, it's unfortunate that it hasn't been the results that they want. I think it's going to be a big one."
The Springboks have won three of their last four matches against England (L1), including each of their last two. Three of the last five games between England and South Africa have been decided by single-point margins.
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